


Midsummer Maddness

by gobokdong, sevenmuses (virgotears)



Series: Gamma Omega Theta [2]
Category: GOT7
Genre: M/M, Slice of Life, mention of religion, you know that vine we're all children of jesus that's it that's the fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-13
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-11-17 14:39:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18100505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gobokdong/pseuds/gobokdong, https://archiveofourown.org/users/virgotears/pseuds/sevenmuses
Summary: I don't feel controlI'm better on my ownI'm used to being so gone for way too long





	Midsummer Maddness

Jaebeom’s mother was speaking Korean again, it was too fast for Jaebeom to understand — and for the most part, he didn’t really care. He had more important things to worry about like whether the Power Rangers were able to kick the latest bad guy’s butt or not.

She sounded excited though, even Jaebeom ’s current understanding of the language could tell. It’s only when he hears the all so familiar sounding of ‘Jaebeom-ah’ does he finally turn his attention away from the pretty ranger on the t.v and glances up at the sound of his mother’s voice.

“Yes umma, I’m coming!” he yells as he quickly speeds towards the front room. His mother was quick to scold him for running inside the house, but Jaebeom wasn’t listening. Instead, his attention adverts to an unfamiliar, older woman with a little boy right besides her, the other boy’s wide with curiosity and wonder.

Jaebeom quickly bows, letting his hands rest on his stomach as he gives a polite greeting. “Hello! Nice to meet you!“

His mother pets his hair in adoration and Jaebeom smiles with pride as he waits for the young boy to return his greeting.

“Oh — he’s so polite, unnie.” The woman smiles at him fondly before looking back at the young boy who was still peeking from behind her skirt. “This is Jinyoung. I heard from your mother that you’re the same age, but Jinyoungie was born later in the year. We just moved to the city.” 

His mother nods her head, gesturing Jaebeom to reach out to Jinyoung, “That makes you his hyung, Jaebum-ah.”

“Oh,” Came Jaebeom’s simple reply. He always wanted to be a hyung, just like the older boys at the church his family goes to. They seemed so much cooler than he was and always seemed to know what to do. “Okay… Jinyoung, you gotta call me hyung then. Do you wanna play with my hot wheels?”

For the first time, Jinyoung moves from behind his mother and shyly nods his head, “Do you have any trucks to play with?”

Jaebeom thinks for a moment, going over the various toys he has in his room. He should... maybe? But the boy still nods before holding out his hand for Jinyoung to grab. “Let’s go then! My room is really cool! My walls are painted the same color as my favorite power ranger and it has glow-in-the-dark stars all over!”

Jinyoung hesitates for a moment, glancing up at his mother first before approaching forward to the other boy and gingerly taking his hand. “Okay, hyung.”

—  
“Yes, umma. I’m on the way to the church right now.” Jaebeom spoke dryly as he pulls into the parking lot of the said establishment. A grimace appeared on his lips as he watched the various kids begin to filter into the church’s hall; it’s a familiar sight, but it definitely wasn’t one Jaebeom exactly wanted to relive.

On the other end of the call, he can hear the sounds of pots and pans loudly being shifted through in the background. “Umma, hang up. Focus on cooking. The last time you were on a call with me, you nearly hurt yourself while cutting the kimchi.” Jaebeom scolds as he locks up his car. “Don’t let appa worry... I’m literally walking into the church right now — Yes, I’ll say hello to Jinah nonna for you. Yes, I’m not wearing those baggy pants right now either.“

His steps are slow until he spots a familiar face opening up the gates to the school the youth group borrowed for their lesson. Jinyoung notices him as well, his eyes lighting up instantly as he steps forward from the gate. He’s wearing an old camp sweater, the letters on the chest are worn out and faded from years of use, but Jaebeom can still recognize them from having the exact same hoodie from the last time he attended the annual trip. 

“Hyung!” Jinyoung’s eyes crinkle into a beam as he holds out his hand towards Jaebeom, “Auntie told me you were coming. We really appreciate it, you know. We needed more teachers around here. It was getting pretty stressful, to be honest, with so few of us volunteering and all.” 

“Ah... It’s no problem...” Jaebeom trails off, his eyes dropping to the younger’s hand before gingerly shaking it, a bit put off about how pleasant Jinyoung was treating him. It had been years since they’ve spoken to one another much less alone with one another. 

Jinyoung pauses for a moment as if struggling to remember something before turning to Jaebeom. “Oh, so Hyunwoo hyung can’t make it to camp this time. He and his girlfriend are going to some wedding in San Diego, or something, so you’re in charge of the games. We already have a list, but that’ll be your department. That’s fine with you, right?” He asks before eyeing Jaebeom with a neutral, almost unreadable expression. “I mean, all those gym stories you always post, I assume —”

Jaebeom nearly chokes at the other’s bluntness before quickly nodding his head, struggling to keep his embarrassment down. “Yeah, I can help out with the sports stuff. I think I can keep up playing capture the flags with a bunch of preteens.”

The other man laughs before patting Jaebeom’s shoulders as he heads into the school, “Well — if you remember how rowdy we were when we were at that age, I think you would rethink what you just said.”

“We were a bunch of hyperactive brats back then, huh.”

—  
The church couldn’t afford a bus this year so the counselors all had to transfer the children up to the campsite themselves and honestly, Jaebeom wasn’t so sure if he really vibed well with the children who clamored into his Honda Accord with their bulky backpacks and sticky fingers.  
As he turned to ensure that the campers all had their seatbelts on, he heard a tap on his window, Jinyoung peering into the car and gesturing Jaebeom to roll down the window.

“Hyung, you’ll be alright with the boys, right? We can trade if you want.” 

Jaebeom shook his head, his hands gripping his steering wheel. “ Nah, I’m good. These dudes look like they’ll make some good company.” He gesturing to the children, an awkward laugh escaping his lips before waving Jinyoung off. “You should go back to your car. We’ll be fine,” Jinyoung bites his lip, eyeing Jaebeom for a moment before finally nodding and walking back to his car.

Jaebeom shouldn’t be worried after all — he’s known the four boys when they were little, barely able to move from behind their parents’ legs back then. But now they’re older, lanky boned with cracking voices, a terrifying time if Jaebeom could recall his preteen years correctly.

“Hyung,” One boy calls out as Jaebeom pulls out of the church’s parking lot. “Why did you come back? My mom was saying that you became a thug since you’ve stopped going to church.”

Jaebeom rolled his eyes. He never understood why so many of the church goers just assumed he was getting into trouble since he wasn’t the exact ideal son of a pastor he used to be. “Uh… Well, Kevin...” he pauses for a contained sigh, “Gossiping behind someone’s back is a sin, so you shouldn’t believe everything you hear.”

He couldn’t wait to come back home, and he made a mental note to text Mark as soon as they made it to the campsite.  
\---

A pleasant pink colored the sky — the campers began to separate into smaller groups, leaving the teachers to mingle amongst themselves. Jaebeom had found himself tending to the campfire, focused in on the small sparks in the amber. 

He could remember running around this exact campsite — his shoelaces untied as he chased Jinyoung through the trees, throwing water balloons at the other campers, his first kiss, the first time he performed in front of a crowd.

The camp brought an overwhelming sense of nostalgia that weighted down his chest like an anchor at sea, a mixture of wistfulness and perhaps regret that he’s shoved this part out of his life for so long… even if the pressure that hung over him from being the pastor’s son was heavy enough to push him away in the first place.

His self-inflicted isolation was interrupted by the sounds of a few people approaching the campfire, Jinyoung leading them with Yuju closely following suit with a guitar in hand.

”Jaebeom Oppa!” Yuju calls out to him and Jaebeom gives her a weak smile. Their families have been pushing for the two to start dating for almost a year now; and while Yuju’s a sweet girl, the two have made it clear that they weren’t each other’s types. At all. Yuju already had a boyfriend and Jaebeom… Well, he didn’t know what or who was his type exactly. “Jinyoung, Yuju. Hey. Do you need help with something?”

Jinyoung shakes his head and takes a seat on a log placed beside the campfire, “No, we finished preparing for dinner and we told the kids what bible stories to perform later.”

Jaebeom whinces recalling the time he had to play David with Taecyeon hyung playing Goliath or how whenever he and Jinyoung were in the same group, the latter would be frustrated by the lame standard of acting Jaebeom or the other campers gave. Even at the young age of twelve Jinyoung, knew he wanted do something in the film industry.. or at the least be in a WongFu Skit.

“Are you going to play someone, Actor Park?” Jaebeom teases, enjoying the pale shade of red creeping on the tips of Jinyoung’s ears.

“No, I can’t let the kids follow a professional like me.” Jinyoung puffs out his chest, “It wouldn’t be fair.”

Yuju rolls her eyes. “Counselors can’t perform anymore because last time, Seunghoon almost dunked Minho for not following the script he wrote. But we are allowed to perform songs at the campfire after dinner.” She stares pointedly at Jaebeom and it takes him a few seconds to realize what Yuju had meant, the young woman practically forcing the guitar into his hand before he became fully aware.

“You want me to play?” Jaebeom questions in disbelief. There’s a sense of insecurity building up in him—even with his ability to jam in Yoongi’s studio, or to mess around and write lyrics with Mark, it’s been awhile since he’s performed in front of others, especially in front of a bunch of kids. Usually, it was in front of drunk dudes in a tiny ass studio in K-town. But before he could even reject the offer, he catches Jinyoung’s eyes — and seeing the anticipation in them made him swallow the insecurity up.. 

“Ugh, fine. But I’m rusty with corny church songs so I may need some time to catch up.”

Jinyoung rolls his eyes as he crosses his arm. “Come on, you know at least two by heart. Every time we hung out at your house, you would be practicing them.” he laughs before he mimicked Jaebeom’s guitar playing, “Over the mountains and the seas, your river runs with love for me.”

“Yah — If I could remind you, you made me memorize that corny ass AJ Rafael song,” Jaebeom mentions, his cheeks heating up at the other’s teasing. “You made me sing that shit to you all the time, my fingers still hur—” 

“Hey! It was a good song! Everyone was obsessed with that song back in the day. Come on, Yuju, don’t you agree?”

\--

“Guys, come on. It’s time to go to bed.” Jaebeom ordered, his voice out of breath as he ushers the group of campers towards their tent. He had told them to go to bed almost twenty minutes ago, and yet, every time he retreated from their tent, he heard giggles and hushed voices before one kid decided to run out with the others soon following. The exhaustion of the day was beginning to settled in and Jaebeom was so close to falling into the heap of dirt in front of his tent. 

A heavy sigh left his lips. “Yah! Come on, if you kids don’t go into your tent and try to get some sleep, I’m taking away tickets from your group. And maybe, I’ll make your group have a handicap for the games tomorrow,” Jaebeom warned while gesturing them to run back into their tents, finally giving a sigh of relief once the group of preteens hurriedly returned.

A loud laugh pierces the air and Jaebeom furrows his brow as he turns to see Jinyoung settled on a nearby bench. His eyes are a bit puffy and his shoulders were slumped with exhaustion, but his smile is wide and the wrinkles around his eyes were shining even in the moon-litten darkness around them. It’s a sight that tugs at Jaebeom’s chest. 

“And what are you laughing at, punk ?” Jaebeom questions, approaching Jinyoung with a frown finally catch his breath. “Sorry, hyung. It’s just you went from a cool youth group leader to a tired father of three real quick.”

Jaebeom’s cheeks heat up and he hopes that Jinyoung thinks it’s from the cold wind that blew through the campsite instead of his own embarrassment of being caught. “Haha. You’ve gotten better at making jokes, but I saw from across the campsite. The girls weren’t being any better.” Jaebeom retorted pointedly, recalling how the younger girls kept pulling Jinyoung back into their tent, stating that they were afraid.

“Well that’s because they like me, not because they just want to mess with me.”

Jabeum doesn’t appreciate the matter-of-fact tone in Jinyoung’s voice, but he knows that kids tended to love Jinyoung... and his years in the youth group had only helped his reputation.

“You look tired though. Why aren’t you passed out in the tent with the rest of the guys?” The campsite was quiet now as the children began to tire out, the sounds of the campfire and the occasional cricket being the only noise now during this time of night. “Seriously Jinyoung, you look like you’re half dead.”

Jinyoung sighs letting his fingers fidget with one another, a habit Jaebeom had noticed first when they were children and still recognized until this day. “Just a little overwhelmed. The higher ups put me in charge this year since I’ve been here the longest and I don’t know... It’s stressful putting all of this all together.”

Jaebeom’s gaze softened. Even if they haven’t spoken heart to heart in almost three years, Jaebeom knew how much pressure the church could put on someone. Image was so important to Jinyoung and letting those around him down was something he feared often.

“You have me, you know?” Jaebeom muttered, shifting through a nearby ice chest before throwing Jinyoung a small bottle of banana milk, feeling embarrassed by his own words. The tug he felt all day was only growing stronger as he watched the younger carefully peel the top off. 

“But do I?” Jinyoung’s voice for the first time that day sounded unsure, placing the bottle down briefly as he answered.

“Of course, when haven’t I gotten your back?” Jaebeom answered without a second thought, letting their shoulders brush as he sat besides Jinyoung. He’s suddenly caught off guard by the look in Jinyoung’s eyes, realizing that maybe his words had a bigger effect on the younger than he had thought.

Jinyoung’s still messing with the top of the bottle. “I missed you, hyung. I mean, I missed this.”

Jaebeom pauses, his stomach turning at the vulnerability in the younger’s voice, almost embarrassed by Jinyoung’s honesty. “Yeah, it’s been a long time since we’ve hung around with just one another.”

And for a moment, the two are silent with only the sound being the subdued hissing of the campfire filling the silence between them. Jinyoung looks down for a moment. With his thick brows furrowed, Jaebeom could recogniz the focus expression on the other’s face. 

“ Jin—”

“ I — “ 

Their words clash together, apologies spilling from their lips. The conversation fumbles until Jinyoung sighs, running his fingers through his hair in mild frustration. “It’s late, hyung. We should go to bed.”

A small hinge of regret began to grow in Jaebeom ’s stomach. He wasn’t sure where it exactly came from, but it for sure bothered him. Enough for him to try to dismiss the feeling despite his need for answers. “You’re probably right. I have to help Seunghoon hyung with gathering firewood tomorrow anyways.”

Jinyoung nods, but he hesitates while watching Jaebeom. It frustrates him, how Jinyoung’s eyes seem to read deep into him, how the younger seemed to know all of Jaebeom’s secrets with just a glance. That, even after all these years, Jinyoung was the person who knew him the most and could still make him feel insecure and rile up his feelings to the point where they remained tangled deep inside his chest.

Jinyoung made him vulnerable. 

“Well... Goodnight, Jaebeom hyung. I’ll see yo—”

Something snaps and Jaebeom finds himself reaching for Jinyoung, clasping his hand almost desperately as he shifted closer to him — holding Jinyoung’s hand to his chest. “I’m sorry, I — Jinyoung, I know I was a dick for not telling you that I was leaving the youth group, I kinda just stopped coming by and left you to dry, it was just, my dad you know? I don’t understand why you’re even being nice to me.”

The tips of Jinyoung’s ears are red, but Jaebeom isn’t sure if it’s due to the crisp wind that blew through the campfire or because of the proximity between them.

The space between them shrinks — his heartbeat quickens, but he’s gone too far to make any backtracks. He presses his lips against Jinyoung’s. His lips are softer than he remembered; but the last time this happened, they were both young, unsure and hesitant. It seems like forever before Jinyoung responds, his mouth moving against Jaebeom’s own, but only for a brief moment before pulling away, his expression unreadable.

Hesitantly, Jaebeom lets his grip on the younger man’s hand fall, feeling awkward like the thirteen year old boy he used to be when he had first kissed Jinyoung all those years ago. How could such a chaste kiss bring his brain to overdrive?

“I should… I mean, we should go to bed. The others will worry...” Jaebeom murmurs, trailing off after a moment of heavy silence, his anxiety beginning to grow.

Jaebeom stands there, watching the younger walk away and he worries for a moment if he had messed up whatever chance they had of rekindling this relationship. That was, before Jinyoung turns — looking at Jaebeom with a grin on his face, amusement twinkling in his eyes. 

“Let’s go back to our tents, hyung. Before the others start to worry.” His voice soft, but Jaebeom could tell that the younger was trying not to laugh.

Jaebeom’s chest lightens up, the tangles in his heart suddenly undone as he smiles back at the other, his self doubt shedding. “Alright.” His fingers brush against Jinyoung’s as he catches up — leaning over and pressing a chaste kiss against his cheek and running to his tent. “I’ll see you in the morning, Jin. Sleep well.”

**Author's Note:**

> so this took a while to upload but! me and sevenmuses have been planning this socal au for like almost a year but! here's the first chapter of my part and i'm really excited to share this au that focuses on like the asian american experience in socal. 
> 
> this first chapter is just sort of buildup and it'll probably get more dramatic from here.
> 
> but maybe this is just a huge advertisement for 88rising who knows.
> 
> im on twitter [ here](https://twitter.com/defspeach)


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